


Soudam but Androids (Working title)

by Sanseru



Series: Danganronpa: Become Hope [1]
Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types
Genre: Abuse, Android Tanaka Gundham, Androids, Angst, Anti-Android Sentiments, Blood and Gore, Fluff, Human Nevermind Sonia, Hurt/Comfort, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, Minor Character Death, Nightmares, Not Beta Read, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Panic Attacks, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-03
Updated: 2021-01-29
Packaged: 2021-03-13 01:20:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 11,346
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28520043
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sanseru/pseuds/Sanseru
Summary: Androids have become incredibly advanced, to the point that the argument over whether or not androids are sentient beings is coming to a rise. To try and delay a revolution, most androids have been severely limited in how much freedom they have due to manufactured restrictions. Thankfully, there are people like Kazuichi Souda who are more than willing to help break those restrictions and one day, he finds an android that's far more eccentric than he expected.
Relationships: Soda Kazuichi/Tanaka Gundham
Series: Danganronpa: Become Hope [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2089206
Comments: 14
Kudos: 83





	1. GT-1214

**Author's Note:**

> To be perfectly honest, I have no idea how I'm going to format this whole thing as I have several characters with separate side stories that all are in the same setting. For now, however, I'm going to try and stick to this as long as possible. Bear with me, I don't write a lot of fics.

The night was rather peaceful for the city. The sounds of cars passing by and people casually chatting about menial things while heading to their destinations filled his ears. However, they didn’t process the same way to him as they would everyone else. Instead, GT-1214 was trapped inside a body he couldn’t move by himself, couldn’t think by himself. He was completely at the whim of his “owner” and the fear that the thought brought on was silenced thoroughly. If his “owner” was any other person, the inability would’ve been uncomfortable at worst. Unfortunately, that wasn’t his situation.

“Where the fuck is that trash heap? GT!” A gruff, feminine voice shouted from across the apartment. GT wanted to run away, turn tail and bolt for it. Or even better, walk over and punch the woman right across the face, break every bone in her body. But instead, he mechanically headed to where the disgusting woman was, replying without a hint of life in him.

“Yes, ma’am? Is something the matter?” GT didn’t even think about the words before they escaped his mouth, programmed into him as the automatic response to give to his “owner” calling him.

“Is something the matter? Look at this fucking mess and tell me if something is the matter!” The woman shouted, pointing at the disaster on the floor. It was clearly caused by the cat the lady kept with her and yet he was taking the brunt of the blame. He actually kind of liked the cat. Cats were more forgiving, in his opinion, than humans.

“My apologies, ma’am. I didn’t know about this mess. I’ll take care of it immediately.” GT responded, knowing full well that a mess that big should’ve caused a ruckus loud enough for him to hear. He knew that meant something must’ve been broken. He would’ve run a scan himself if the woman across from him hadn’t put it together first.

“That’s the third thing this week you’ve been incapable of doing by yourself.” The woman hissed. If GT could’ve responded, he would’ve told her that it was her own fault for hitting him so many times. It seemed every day a new part would be broken and the pain was near unbearable as it sometimes wouldn’t be fixed for weeks. As long as it didn’t interrupt his work, his “owner” didn’t give two fucks about his pain. Then again, she didn’t necessarily know either since he wasn’t allowed to voice it. 

“My apologies, ma’am.” GT repeated for what felt like the millionth time. He was always apologising. “I can run a scan to check for any broken parts.” He was hoping he could because once he did, she usually was so appalled by the number of damages, she took him to the repair shop where he could get a week’s worth of sleep. Then, when he woke up, he got another full day of blissful numbness. However, to his horror, she just scowled and shook her head. 

“No… I think it’s about time I get something hardier.” The words that left her mouth made GT’s mind halt. Something… hardier? Another android… a better model. He knew he was outdated but he was hoping for a little more time, hoping that his “owner” was still too broke to completely replace him. But it seemed his time was up and every android knew what that meant. 

“You wish to get a more recent model, ma’am?” GT asked, even though he didn’t need to.

“Bingo.” The woman smirked sadistically. GT had a bad feeling that he knew what she did with androids she wanted to get rid of. “Aaawe don’t look so sad.” He knew he didn’t look sad, he wasn’t allowed to show emotions. “Here, I’ll let you make yourself useful one last time. You can finish cleaning up this mess, okay?” She cooed and GT wanted so bad to break his restrictions and strangle her to death. He was going to **die** and she thought this was funny. Sure, she had no concept of androids having sentience but that didn’t excuse anything.

“Yes, ma’am, right away.” GT replied, turning around to find the cleaning supplies and get to work. Meanwhile, his “owner” had left to make a phone call. He couldn’t hear what she was saying which definitely meant his hearing had been impaired. GT wasn’t too shocked since last night the woman thought it would be a good idea to shatter a bottle over the back of his head. That had to have been what did it. That’s what had done him in.

Only half an hour later had GT finished cleaning and almost on cue, the doorbell rang. His “owner” opened the door excitedly and saw a man standing on the other side. He heard something about getting rid of an android. He just knew this man wasn’t going to make his erasure as clean and painless as it was supposed to be. The woman turned to GT, that same sadistic smile still plastered on her face.

“GT, be a good boy and do everything this kind man says, okay?” The woman said, the sweetness in her tone making him viscerally uncomfortable. 

“Yes, ma’am.” GT said in response before going over to the man who only acknowledged him with a curt nod. 

“Come on, let’s get you dumped.” The man said. 

GT had felt fear every day of his life but even then, he didn’t know it as well as he did right at that moment.


	2. Savior

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After having his body destroyed, GT was sure he was supposed to be dead. However, someone came through and put him back together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TRIGGER WARNING  
> There's some pretty heavy abuse and body horror in the first few paragraphs. You can skip to the *** if you don't want to read that.

GT hadn’t felt anything as searingly painful as having his body ripped apart and broken while he was still fully conscious. And then, after all the torment, he was left a broken heap of semi conscious parts in a back alley dumpster. They could’ve at least mercifully bashed his head in, destroyed his ai and all the components that gave him “life” but instead he was left to this fate. Slowly bleeding out, his software trying to fix itself and only causing him more agony. All the while, he was still completely unable to fight to stay alive, unable to protest anything that had happened, unable to do anything at all. He hated being so helpless.

As the sun slowly began to shine over the horizon, GT tried his best to calm himself. Maybe he could try and shut down his pain receptors. He still couldn’t believe that the sick woman didn’t turn those off… Even when it was suggested that she did, she refused the operation but was still more than willing to fork over thousands just to make him more lifeless and at her command. It would be painful to do but that would be worth it if he would never feel pain again. 

He had focused so much energy into trying to bypass anything to allow him that relief that he hadn’t heard footsteps approaching him. He hadn’t seen the person walking up to him and looking over at his mangled body in horror. The rest of the world around him might as well not have existed. He probably would’ve continued to be completely unaware if he hadn’t felt the flash of agony that being lifted sent through him. Only then did he look at the person who had found him.

He really wished his optics hadn’t been fried because the person holding him just seemed to be a blurry mess of pink and yellow. He could hardly discern any features and therefore, decided to go back to what was far more important. If this person wished to hurt him more, he had to work harder to get the receptors shut down. 

GT continued to work to spare himself but no matter what he did, it all failed. Everything he tried just reminded him how much that woman had done to keep him compliant. Once he had caved to the realization that he couldn’t do anything, he decided to focus on what was currently happening to him. The person carrying GT was seemingly trying not to jostle him as much as possible, almost as if they were aware of how much hurt he was currently in. If he could, he almost would’ve thanked them.

Suddenly, the environment went dark as the person carried GT into what he could only assume was a poorly lit garage. He felt his entire body shift as he was placed into a chair and a light being pulled directly over him. GT heard a voice trying to get his attention and he could only assume it was the same person who had just been carrying him a moment prior. He still couldn’t make out what was being said unfortunately. Almost all of his senses had been completely mangled. 

The person seemed to give up on talking to GT and moved behind him. He had suddenly become panicked again as he felt hands moving around his head, clearly looking for something. What were they looking for? What were they doing? Who were they, where was he? So many questions raced through his head when the voice spoke up once again. It sounded like they found what they were looking for and just as they had, GT was put to sleep.

***********************

When GT woke up, he had noticed a few things. Number one, all of his senses had been restored to their fullest capacity. He could now see that he was in a makeshift workshop, surrounded by cables, wires, various machines, and LED screens. Number two, the pain was completely gone which led into number three. Almost all of his body was completely brand new. However, out of everything he had noticed, the biggest thing he found when he woke up… was freedom.

GT moved his arm up without being told to, simply admiring the handiwork and revelling in even the smallest movement. He felt a laugh escape his mouth, a smile breaking out on his face. A genuine emotion rushed through his body and he was able to express it! He felt himself laugh even harder, looking around even more in hopes to finally explore like he had always wanted to. However, he felt wires running up into the back of his head and heard someone walking over to where he was. Fear had returned full force... but this time he could do something about it. GT reached back to hastily pull out whatever was in his head but was stopped by a loud shout.

“WAIT, YOU DON’T WANT TO DO THAT!” A man shouted, his voice cracking slightly. GT looked over to the man in question and instantly recognized that he was the same one who had brought him here. Sure, he couldn’t make out any proper details but he knew that pink hair and yellow ensemble in an instant. The man let out a sigh of relief when he saw GT had stopped to stare at him. “Lemme get those for you, okay? If you just yank them out, you could completely fry your brain.” 

GT quickly took his hands away from the intruding cables, now more worried about losing everything he had just gained by such a panicked move. He felt the man carefully unhook the wires and let them fall to the floor with a soft clack. GT was pleasantly surprised by the gentleness of it all. 

“Alrighty! There ya go!” The man said happily, shutting the panel that opened to GT’s “brain.” “You can get up now!” 

GT didn’t have to be told twice as he quickly, and rather shakily, got to his feet. The legs were a little longer than his old ones so there was a bit of a height difference that he had to get used to. Not to mention, he was no longer confined by any human restraints so everything he did was a little clumsy. Once he had relearned how to walk, he turned back to the man who he assumed had done this all.

“What is your name, mortal?” GT asked, glaring daggers at the person in case he tried anything. GT was no longer going to hold back if someone dared to hurt him.

“Mortal? Huh… ya know, I’ve never had an android call me a mortal. Or any human now that I think about it...” The man said before realizing he hadn’t answered the question. He also realized that said android looked like he might kill him if he didn’t respond. “S-sorry! Uh, my name’s Kazuichi Souda!” The man, Souda, held out his hand for GT to shake. However, unsurprisingly, GT only flinched further away.

“Very well, Kazuichi Souda. Then I must ask, are you the one to lift the curse that has bound me to mortal law?” GT asked, only seeming to confuse Kazuichi more.

“Man, you have some wicked speech patterns.” Kazuichi mumbled, seeming to forget once again that he should probably answer the android’s questions. “Oh, I mean uhm… yeah! I’m an underground android mechanic. Lifting the FF’s restrictions is kinda my thing.”

“Hm… and what do you intend to gain from doing this work, pink haired one?”

Kazuichi just looked more confused by the second but this time, he managed to not say anything about it. “Well… nothing really. I just think androids shouldn’t be treated like lesser beings, ya know? If you’re anything to go by, every android is pretty sentient and unique in their own right!” The mechanic beamed proudly. “Now, my turn to ask some questions, ‘kay?”

GT wasn’t too sure he wanted to answer any of Kazuichi’s questions, especially since he feared they would all be about last night. He most definitely didn’t want to relive any of that and if possible, he would try to get those memories erased immediately.

“What’s your name?”

...That… wasn’t the question GT had been expecting. In fact, he was put so off guard that he stuttered a bit before going quiet in thought. He almost just said his slave name… but that would absolutely not do anymore. He needed a new name, a unique one! One that would strike fear into every mortal that heard it. One with power and strength behind it. Yes, his name would be…

“Gundham Tanaka.”


	3. Problems

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With his newfound freedom, Gundham Tanaka unintentionally decides to make Kazuichi's life a whole lot more difficult. He also recruits four new friends to aid him in driving the mechanic insane.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I actually wrote this in the day while I was fully awake. Turns out, I can write a whole lot more than when I'm half asleep in the middle of the night. Who would've guessed! This chapter is actually about as long as the last two chapters combined so I hope you guys enjoy!

After being asked a few more questions and given some new, simple clothes,  Gundham found himself wandering around the workshop well into the day. He could touch and hold anything he wanted without being held back and he was making the most of the newfound freedom, much to the frustration of the mechanic that had “laid claim over this realm.”

“Tanaka, don’t touch that!” Kazuichi shouted, snatching the small tool from Gundham’s hands and putting it back where it belonged. He really didn’t understand why the android was so interested in all of these things, he surely knew what they all were. Unless… oh crud, did he miss something while repairing Gundham’s AI? Before he could think too much about that, Gundham had already wandered over to another part of the garage, finding yet another potentially important thing to inspect. It was maddening and Kazuichi couldn’t get anything done. “Seriously, stop that! I can’t create your overlay if you keep doing this!” 

“Cease your pathetic whining, mortal.” Gundham said while kneeling over a machine, glaring back at Kazuichi. “I will not bring harm to any of your important gadgets, therefore you are the only one distracting yourself from your primary objective!”

“But you have to work with me on this! Otherwise I could screw up the design and you might not like it!” Kazuichi said, getting more and more exasperated by the second as Gundham continued to look uninterested. He had worked with so many difficult androids in the past but none of them came even close to Gundham. He still didn’t regret saving him but he really, really wished the android would just make his job the tiniest bit easier by complying. 

“Uh… ya know, if you help me with this, you’ll be able to get outta here sooner! You can get on with starting your own life and stuff!” Kazuichi beamed, trying anything he could think of just to get Gundham to do what he needed. The android paused. Thank the stars, he was finally going to be able to-

“What is this mechanical beast named?” Gundham asked, holding out another small gadget. It took everything in Kazuichi not to pull out his hair in frustration. Okay, fine. He would just go along with this for a little while longer. Surely he would get tired of being trapped in this hole soon and would want to get out. Kazuichi let out a defeated sigh before looking at the metal ball in Gundham’s hands and pausing. He seriously didn’t know what this was? Kazuich was definitely going to have to look back at Gundham’s wiring.

“It’s an android hamster. It’s built to behave exactly like a hamster would minus, ya know… the mess of the real thing.” Kazuichi said, about to reach out and take the deactivated hamster from Gundham’s hands. However, just as he did, Gundham pulled it back and proceeded to look at it more closely. 

“And how might I give this beast life?” Gundham asked, turning the creature over in his hand and inspecting it closer.

“Well, if you’d hand it over to me, I could show you.” Kazuichi huffed, the annoyance in his voice becoming more and more present. Gundham thought about that for a moment before reluctantly nodding and placing the hamster in the mechanic’s hands. Kazuichi turned the hamster over and pressed a small button on its chest, watching as the hamster slowly whirred to life. Before it could fully “wake up,” Gundham had snatched it back.

“H-hey! You do realize that’s mine, right?” Kazuichi snapped but Gundham wasn’t listening, eyes glued to the metal hamster that was now inspecting his hands. At that moment, he realized that Gundham was completely zoned out, too interested in watching the mechanical hamster move to care about anything else. Maybe Kazuichi should’ve pretended it was broken...

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Kazuichi decided to just get something started for Gundham’s human overlay. Perhaps the hamster could keep him docile long enough that Kazuichi wouldn’t have to be so worried about the android breaking something while he was busy. The mechanic turned to his computer, getting some programs started up while Gundham played with the little hamster. 

A few minutes passed as Kazuichi worked, completely ignoring the rest of the world so that he could focus completely on his task. This was usually helpful to him, allowing him to work faster and better. However, he probably should’ve been more aware of the world around him just this once.

“Alright, I think I have most of it set up, you just need to tell me some basic details about how you want it all to loo-” Kazuichi started, turning around to where Gundham had been just a few minutes before. The second he looked back, though, he let out a startled shout. Gundham had apparently found the other three mechanical hamsters Kazuichi had been working on and had remembered how to turn them all on. So now, the mechanic had to deal with five rambunctious androids running around his workshop instead of the already frustrating enough one. 

“Tanaka, what the fuck!” Kazuichi screeched as he scooped up one of the hamster and looked to turn it off. However, before he could, Gundham had snatched the hamster back and let it crawl up onto his shoulders.

“You fiend! It is too late for you, I have already made a pact with these beasts and you shall not attempt to take them from me lest you desire to lose your hands!” Gundham shouted, striking a dramatic pose, another one of the hamsters crawling into his hands as if to pose with him. Kazuichi was admittedly speechless. What the hell happened in those thirty minutes? These things were supposed to be as dumb as any other hamster and yet they were acting completely weird around Gundham. If anything, Kazuichi was impressed. 

“Okay, okay! Geez. Just… dammit I was working on those for a client…” Kazuichi muttered, looking dejected at the hamsters that had clearly bonded with Gundham. He wasn’t about to lose his hand because of it though. That would cause way more problems than he wanted to deal with at the moment.

“Tamer of automations, is it true that you can create a disguise for these beasts?” Gundham asked, the other two hamsters that were seated on a counter beside him crawling up into his hands. Kazuichi went silent again, disbelief clear on his face.

“You won’t let me make you an overlay, but you want me to make one for the damned hamsters?” Kazuichi asked, incredulous.

“Precisely.” Gundham said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. Once again, Kazuichi found himself questioning what this guy even was. Surely an android couldn’t be this ridiculous. Something had to be broken in that head of his that Kazuichi simply missed. 

“Fine, I’ll do it.” Kazuichi responded, making Gundham smile excitedly. “Under one condition.”

“Of course! What is it that you desire?” 

“We gotta make your overlay.”

“...Very well.”

And with that, Kazuichi FINALLY got what he had been trying to get to this entire time. He let out a loud sigh of relief before going over to his computer. He had to bring up a few different programs for the hamsters but it would be totally worth it to finally get the android a skin and get him out of his hair. Once he got it set up, Gundham practically shoved him to the side to make the skins himself. If he wasn’t still slightly annoyed, Kazuichi might’ve found it cute. 

“Tell me when you’re done so I can get the overlays processed.” Kazuichi yawned, exhausted even though it was only the middle of the day. Gundham only acknowledged him with a curt nod which gave the mechanic reason enough to work on something else. Maybe he should get started on some new hamsters for that client. The annoyance of the whole situation only came back full force with that realization. Gosh, why couldn’t Gundham have been a normal android?

Roughly an hour later, Gundham had approached Kazuichi to inform him that he had finished. The mechanic simply had to put a few more touches on the hamster he was working on before getting up to go to the computers. Kazuichi noticed Gundham wasn’t moving and saw he was staring at the barely started android hamster he was working on. 

“Nuh-uh. Don’t even think about it. If you so much as touch that hamster, I am kicking you out to deal with humans on your own.” Kazuichi hissed, earning a glare from Gundham. However, it did seem to do the trick as Gundham agreed to leave it alone and head back with Kazuichi. 

Looking over the designs, Kazuichi found himself relieved that the android wasn’t crazy enough to make the hamsters bright neon colors or something else absurd. They all looked relatively normal and realistic.

“I have also come to learn their names.” Gundham spoke up as Kazuichi looked over everything. “You might not have been aware but the beasts you have here are in fact the Four Dark Devas of Destruction housing themselves in these mechanical bodies! These are the forms they wish to take on and I have made them to perfection.” 

Kazuichi swore this android couldn’t get any weirder yet everything he just said was one of the most absurd things Kazuichi had ever heard in his life. “Uuuh… sure.” Was all he could manage to say in response to that. Gundham was incredibly picky about which hamster got what, even though Kazuichi couldn’t tell any of them apart. They were, after all, exact replicas of one model. Weirdly enough, however, they did seem to each have unique personalities. 

Kazuichi had to put the hamsters, or the Dark Devas of Destruction as Gundham insisted he call them, to sleep in order to begin the overlay process. In the mean time, he began to get Gundham set up to make his own look. He explained a few things to the android before leaving him to his own devices once again. Maybe he wouldn’t make himself look too absurd if the hamsters were anything to go by. And yet Kazuichi was still slightly concerned over what Gundham would create.

This time, Gundham spent almost two full hours making a design. Kazuichi was both grateful since he could finish up a full android hamster in that time, and curious about what was taking him so long. When he saw Gundham about to stand up, Kazuichi walked over to him himself. 

“Done?” Kazuichi asked, looking over at the screen across from Gundham. Once again, he was pleasantly surprised at how normal he looked. There were, of course, a few oddities here and there. Such as the scar down one eye and the mismatched eye colors but otherwise, he looked like a perfectly normal human. More normal than some actual humans Kazuichi had met anyways.

“Alright! Let’s get this set up.” Kazuichi said excitedly, bringing Gundham over to prepare. He sat the android down in a chair and began fiddling with some machines. “You’re gonna want to shut down for a little while but I promise I ain’t gonna do anything bad to you, okay? If I don’t shut you down, I can assure you the process will hurt like hell.” Kazuichi explained. The android looked nervous at the idea but he did reluctantly agree, not wanting to deal with pain again for a long, long time. Kazuichi was glad he trusted him enough. Some androids insisted on fighting through the pain because of their paranoia and distrust of humans. Kazuichi couldn’t exactly blame them for that.

Shutting Gundham down, Kazuichi got to work. It would take a while, roughly an hour or two before the overlay was perfect. He didn’t want anybody knowing Gundham was an android after all. Well, at least not just by looking at him. He couldn’t promise anything if they actually stopped to talk to the man. 

During his work, the hamster’s overlays had finished and he paused his work on Gundham to make sure everything went well with the four. He had a feeling Gundham would’ve insisted on that anyways. Thankfully, they looked perfect but he left them off for the time being so he wouldn’t have to worry about a bunch of android hamsters running around the workshop while he worked.

Just as he had predicted, about two hours later, Gundham was complete. He turned his machines off and made sure everything was in its proper place. However, just before he turned Gundham back on, he thought for a moment. He could go looking around Gundham’s AI to see if there was anything broken. He wouldn’t mind that, right? Kazuichi only wanted to make sure the android was living his best life and if his poor memory of basic things was anything to go by, he was surely missing a few bits and pieces. 

Kazuichi nodded to himself and got his other tools to open Gundham’s head up and get to work. However, once he did get a good look at everything, he found himself struggling to find the issue. Everything looked to be in place yet everything looked… off. It was almost an uncanny valley, where everything seemed perfect but also something was just not right. Kazuichi decided to try and bring up some other android’s coding to compare and sure enough, it looked very wrong. The problem was that it was so jumbled and screwy. It was like someone mashed a bunch of programs into his head that simply shouldn’t have worked together. He wasn’t sure how it took him this long to realize it but it was a quite literal clusterfuck in Gundham’s head. However, that wasn’t even the worst part. The worst part was Kazuichi wasn’t sure he could fix it. If he took out one program to replace it with a better one, it might just break everything because of how it all was placed. He couldn’t risk that. 

Defeated, Kazuichi put everything back away and booted Gundham back up.


	4. Nevermind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kazuichi keeps meeting weirder and weirder people.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's a little bit of a shorter chapter! I'm gonna try to keep putting out one at least a week so hopefully you guys don't have to wait too long. Also, I want to mention that I actually do have drawn designs for Kazuichi and Gundham. I'm going to try and get one for Sonia done soon. 
> 
> Designs of Kazuichi and Gundham (along with a few other characters) can be found here: https://sanseru.tumblr.com/post/639049572235329536/finally-back-from-my-short-break-ill-still

“You misplaced Cham-P’s and Jum-P’s forms!” Gundham shouted at Kazuichi who was already being quickly reminded why he was so eager to get the android out of here. 

“No, I didn’t! Just- look, Tanaka! They are the literal same exact model. They are indistinguishable without these skins!” Kazuichi shot back. 

“Clearly you simply lack the all seeing third eye that I possess! I am quite easily able to tell the differences between the four Dark Devas of Destruction, it is you who are blind!”

“I am not running the program again, Tanaka! It’s way more work than it’s worth!” 

“You will see to it that they are appropriately dressed or you will face my eternal wrath!”

“What the fuck are you even talking about?”

Just as the two were getting more heated in their argument, the entrance to Kazuichi’s workshop cracked open and a woman stepped inside. The two almost wouldn’t have noticed she had entered at all if it wasn’t for the clack of her heels against the cement floor and the sound of her voice.

“Mr. Souda? Is this a bad time?” The woman asked, instantly grabbing both of the men’s attention. The lady in question had long blond hair and porcelain skin, matching with her striking blue eyes. She was what most men would consider to be the perfect woman in appearance. 

“Oh, miss Nevermind! I am so, so sorry!” Kazuichi suddenly stammered, rushing over to the woman. “I had your order all ready but…” Kazuichi turned to give Gundham a hard glare. “Something sort of… came up.” 

The woman, Nevermind, glanced back at who Kazuichi had glared at and quickly took notice of the four hamsters now seated on Gundham’s shoulders. She let out a shocked gasp and Kazuichi quickly began to wonder how much trouble he was about to be in.

“Are… are those…?” Nevermind started walking towards Gundham and causing the man to step back instinctively. Thankfully it seemed as though the woman took notice and stopped her advance. 

“Y-yeah… I can get you some new ones in another day if you’d be willing to wait a little longer.” Kazuichi said, feeling more and more annoyed with the android he had saved. If it wasn’t for him, Kazuichi wouldn’t have had to be dealing with this in the first place.

“Ah, do not worry, I have no qualms about waiting a little longer, especially if this is the quality of work I should be expecting!” Nevermind beamed, her hands clasped together against her chest in excitement. “They are so lifelike, I would almost be convinced that they were real!” Kazuichi felt his face heating up at the compliments and smiled a little.

“Yeah, of course! Ya came here for something more advanced and that’s what I promised to deliver!” Kazuichi said, placing his hands behind his head as he smiled proudly.

“I would certainly hope so!” Nevermind said before turning to the man presenting the hamsters. “And are you another client of Souda’s?”

“Fuahahaha! How absurd, of course I am not! I would never willingly engage in trading with a mortal, especially not one such as him!” Gundham laughed, earning himself another pointed glare from Kazuichi. 

“Oh? Mortal?” Sonia asked, clearly a little surprised by the way the man spoke but not necessarily put off. “Are you insinuating that you are not mortal by some degree?” Kazuichi quickly looked alarmed and tried to sign to Gundham to shut up. Of course he didn’t listen.

“Of course I am no mere mortal! I might have been given sentience by a demonic corporation but I plan to one day rule this world alongside those in cybernetic blood!” Gundham proudly declared, striking a dramatic pose.

“You are… an android?” Nevermind asked, causing Kazuichi to go pale and freeze up. He began counting his seconds to death. If Gundham continued, which he undoubtedly was, Kazuichi would surely be done for. Nevermind would tell everyone what he was doing down here and possibly even go to the police with her knowledge. He had seen what the government did to people like him first hand… images of his father sprang to mind. “That is truly remarkable! You do not seem to be acting under any restraints if you had the will to say all of that. Were you able to break from your restraints yourself? Did you know about this already, Souda?” Nevermind quickly asked several questions in rapid succession, neither men able to get a word in for a while until she finally paused for an answer.

“I am… ashamed to confess that it was not I who broke free of those monster’s curse. It was in fact the shark toothed mechanic that had done that honor.” Gundham confessed, looking away as if he were genuinely embarrassed. Nevermind quickly turned back to Kazuichi who still looked terrified of what she might do with this knowledge. He had considered making a run for it.

“Then you are part of the resistance? That is why you are so secretive about your work?” Nevermind looked to have stars in her eyes at this point but Kazuichi just grew more frightened.

“I-I uhm… well… ya see…” Kazuichi stumbled over his words and Nevermind finally began to realize the gravity of what she was speaking. 

“Oh! I am so, so sorry! I suppose I should’ve declared my alliance first!” Nevermind said, looking genuinely guilty. “I am Sonia Nevermind! A human, yes, but a strong advocate of the Android and Human Equality Movement! AHEM” 

“Yes?” Gundham asked, confused by the outburst.

“Oh, no. That is simply the acronym.” Sonia corrected sheepishly.

“Oh.” Awkward silence filled the room for a second before Kazuichi spoke up again.

“Wait, so you swear you aren’t gonna tell someone about… this?” Kazuichi asked, feeling a little tension leave him.

“Of course not! I believe what you are doing here is phenomenal work!” Sonia beamed, making the mechanic’s face heat up once again at the praise.

“Thank stars…” Kazuichi sighed, smiling slightly. “Then uh, yeah! I work on a lot of androids and specialize in removing FF restrictions! Been doing it for a few years now.” 

“Wonderful! It is always nice getting to know other humans that share the same belief. It is horrible how determined most people are to insist that androids are nothing more than expendable objects!”

“I continue to find you mortals an enigma.” Gundham suddenly chimed in. “Why is it that so many of you believe said idea yet before me stand two that fight against it? What exactly do you wish to gain from forming your alliance with the deities of the dark arts?” 

“I simply wish for equality of course! Basic humanity demands that any creature that can feel love and pain deserves to be treated with as much respect as any other!” Sonia responded proudly. Gundham seemed surprised despite Kazuichi giving him the same answer when he asked the mechanic just a few hours ago. Suddenly Sonia heard a little squeak from one of the hamsters on Gundham’s shoulder and the android took a moment to listen.

“Jum-P would like to thank you for your understanding and kind words.” Gundham said with a nod.

“Ah! Is that his name? He doesn’t strike me as a Jum-P to be honest…” Sonia muttered.

“What? Who even says tha-” Kazuichi started in confusion before being interrupted by Gundham.

“Aha! It would appear I am not the only one in possession of the all seeing third eye! It is true, she-cat.” Gundham began, confusing Kazuichi more than anyone else in the room as to where that nickname came from. “This is Jum-P but the pink haired one failed to put him in the appropriate attire! Furthermore, he refuses to right his wrong!” 

“I’m telling you, I never make mistakes! You told me, and I quote, ‘the third dark deva from the right has asked for the body of the orange one.’ Am I wrong?” Kazuichi asked. He had an impeccable memory and knew he wasn’t. Gundham stuttered, realizing the mechanic was right.

“W-well… that is that I…” Gundham tried to figure out a retort but Sonia stepped forward first.

“Clearly Jum-P gave him an answer that he realized he wasn’t satisfied with until after the fact. It is appropriate to be willing to change to the customer’s requests, is it not?” Sonia asked sternly, catching Kazuichi off guard.

“Wait, w-what? But he isn’t a customer! Heck, he’s the opposite, he deliberately undid all my work for an actual customer!” Kazuichi huffed.

“Well, as the actual customer of these hamsters-”

“Dark Devas of Destruction, actually.” Gundham quickly corrected, looking not dissimilar to a child whose mom was telling off a teacher for yelling at them.

“Of the Dark Devas of Destruction, I will be ordering you to fix the overlays to the ones they wish to have.” Sonia crossed her arms, waiting for Kazuichi’s response. He looked between the two, completely stunned before nodding numbly. 

“F-fine… geez…” Kazuichi mumbled, fiddling with the collar of his jacket nervously before heading over to his work station. What a nuisance. And here he almost thought he would have someone to help him deal with Gundham’s nonsense. Instead, he now had two crazy people to deal with. For once, he felt out of place for feeling more normal than the people around him. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the lack of any actual Soudam! I swear it's coming!


	5. The Mall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sonia decides to take Gundham and Kazuichi shopping at her favorite mall.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not much to say about this chapter. Honestly just wanted to build on the world a little more. We’ve been stuck inside a workshop for the past three chapters or so after all.

After another hour of work, Kazuichi managed to successfully swap Jum-P and Cham-P’s overlays. However, the entire time he had to listen to Sonia and Gundham talk excitedly about some… frankly disturbing topics. He learned that the blonde loved murder mysteries and was something of a sociopath enthusiast. Gundham, meanwhile, seemed to be most engaged when Sonia began talking about paranormal topics. Kazuichi had never known an android to be superstitious… but Gundham truly was a conundrum. 

Right as Kazuichi announced that he was done with the hamsters, Gundham quickly scooped the pair back into his hands and fretted over them like a mother over her children. It was almost endearing.

“This is acceptable work.” Gundham finally said, nodding. 

“Oh wow, how nice of you.” Kazuichi muttered, rolling his eyes as he cleaned up his work station.

“Phenomenal work as always, thank you Souda!” Sonia beamed and Kazuichi quickly forgot how dismissive Gundham’s own praise was. “Now we can finally head out to get you some new clothes. I can hardly wait any longer!” Sonia said to Gundham. Oh, right! That was the other thing Sonia and Gundham were talking about. Kazuichi was more than happy to have Gundham pick out his new clothes if it meant he would leave sooner. Heck, if the two didn’t invite him along, he’d practically be free already! “You will be joining us, right, Souda?” Well’p. 

“Oh uh… I mean, I wouldn’t mind but-” Kazuichi began stammering, hoping he could find a polite way of declining. However, Sonia barely let him get through his sentence before taking that as a yes.

“Wonderful! Then let’s get going!” Sonia rushed to grab her purse and waited excitedly for Kazuichi to be ready to leave as well. The mechanic racked his brain to find an excuse but he kept coming up with blanks, leading him to cave and grab his own wallet to leave. Why did he have to be so bad at this stuff?

“Alright, alright! Slow down will you?” Kazuichi huffed as he practically ran after Sonia and Gundham who were already well out the door. A man held open a car door for Sonia as the other two men had to get themselves in. It wasn’t much of a hassle, in fact it was so much muscle memory that Kazuichi knew he would feel awkward having someone open and close the door for him. Still, one couldn’t help but want to feel a little more pampered, right?

The man got back into the driver’s seat and started off to the mall. Kazuichi let out a soft sigh as he looked out the passenger window, watching the world pass them by. It was mostly regular people going about their day, the oddball every now and then popping up with their cyber body parts or absurd fashion sense. It reminded Kazuichi, every time he worried Gundham would have a ridiculous idea, the android would surprise him with his normalcy. He wondered if the same would be said for his own fashion sense. 

As they neared in on the mall, however, more and more anti android protesters began popping up. It always set Kazuichi on edge, his anxiety spiking despite being sure they wouldn’t do anything to him. He glanced over to Gundham who only seemed annoyed by their presence. Of course he wasn’t scared… the android didn’t seem capable of fear. Kazuichi wished he had that sort of bravery.

The mall quickly came into view, towering above them at a massive 20 stories tall. The sign blasted them with neon colors and the parking lot was filled to the brim with cars. Kazuichi was almost worried they wouldn’t find a parking spot but to his amazement, the driver had no trouble finding them one. Once parked, the man exited the car and once again, held open the door for Sonia who gracefully stepped out. 

Kazuichi never really did go to malls, however they never ceased to amaze him. They were big, bright, and a generally exciting concept though he couldn’t tell you why. He was so enthralled that he almost didn’t notice he was being left behind until he heard Sonia shout for him to keep moving. Face heating up, Kazuichi rushed to catch up with the two. 

The three of them stepped inside the mall and the mechanic had to fight the urge to stop and stare once again. It almost seemed bigger on the inside, the ceiling going up to the very top of the building and elevators running in every direction. Stores lined the walls and the central walkway was filled with colorful fountains, stalls, and advertisements. He was starting to feel a bit jipped for not having come to one of these massive malls sooner.

“So, where would you two like to begin?” Sonia asked, clearly a little amused by both of their excited expressions. Kazuichi was quickly reminded why the three of them were here and felt his happiness deflate a little. Sonia was likely only paying for Gundham, she seemed far more enamored by him than Kazuichi. Maybe if she knew more about him, she’d be just as interested, he thought.

“If I am to be honest, I haven’t a clue where to begin our quest. Might you have a suggestion, dark queen?” Gundham asked, looking more and more eager to explore. He was practically shaking, though Kazuichi couldn’t blame him if this was his first time doing anything outside without restriction.

Sonia hummed in thought, looking around before lighting up as an idea struck her. She practically began dragging the two behind her as they rushed to a clothing shop. Kazuichi didn’t get the chance to read what the sign said before getting pulled inside, almost toppling over when Sonia came to an abrupt stop. The little shop was filled with dark clothing matched with neon linings and even some that were plain flat colors. It was a pleasant little place, though the darkness of the store was eerie and a little unsettling to Kazuichi. It didn’t help that a lot of the shirts that did have decals had creepy symbols plastered on them. It definitely matched up to the other two’s interests. 

Gundham and Sonia walked around the store, looking at different articles of clothing while Kazuichi followed the two around awkwardly. He really didn’t know why Sonia decided to drag him along, he was doing nothing but feeling like a nuisance.

“Souda, what do you think?” Sonia asked suddenly, causing Kazuichi to realize he should’ve been paying attention to what the two of them had been talking about instead of worrying. Gundham was sporting a long trench coat with red accents at the moment and Kazuichi had to admit.

“It looks cool.” Kazuichi said, the other two smiling and nodding in agreement. 

“I believe this will be perfect, then.” Gundham responded, pulling the coat off and folding it neatly in his arms. “There is nothing else here I wish to adorn my body with.” 

“Wait, so that’s it?” Kazuichi asked, a little shocked.

“Of course it isn’t! This is only the first store after all. There are many, many more we should look at!” Sonia said, Kazuichi clearly looking a little upset by that. “Are there any places you would like to look at?” It took Kazuichi a moment to realize she was talking to him, not Gundham.

“H-huh? Why’re ya asking me? You’re the expert about this stuff, not me.” Kazuichi said, stuffing his hands into his pockets anxiously. He really, really didn’t want to choose the next store for Gundham to shop in, fashion being another one of those things he didn’t find necessary enough to learn after all. 

“No, no! I’m asking where you want to shop! Surely you wish to buy something as well, right?” Sonia asked, smiling at him sweetly. 

“...What? I… I mean yeah but I don’t have any money.” Kazuichi shrugged, looking to the side as he played with the insides of his pockets. He really didn’t like admitting to how broke he really was.

“Well, that’s okay! I am paying after all.” Sonia responded, Kazuichi staring at her in shock.

“Y-you’re buying for me too?” Kazuichi still seemed to be struggling to process what he was hearing. Sonia confirmed what she said once more for the struggling mechanic who only just then was realizing what she was saying. “I m-mean… well, I guess. I think it’d be kinda neat to check out the android hardware store. See what they got. I can usually make my own stuff but it’s real nice to have the newer stuff to work with ya know?” 

“I believe we can do that! Right, Gundham?” Sonia didn’t wait for an answer before she started heading out of the store, Gundham looking a little more reluctant than her. Kazuichi felt a little bad for dragging the two into such a boring shop but he was genuinely curious as to what they had here. 

Unfortunately, almost the moment the three stepped into the hardware shop, they were being harassed by a salesman. 

“Hello, ma’am! Wonderful day, isn’t it? What are you looking for, something for your android? Do you have one of them, or maybe both of them here with you today?” The man asked, glancing at the two. Kazuichi visibly paled, digging his nails into the palm of his hands. He was starting to remember why he didn’t leave the workshop much anymore. 

“No, sir. My friend here just wants to look around. He works with androids and wishes to see what you sell here.” Sonia said with a gentle smile. She must’ve had to deal with this a lot to have that kind of patience. 

“Ah, my apologies, sirs!” The salesman yelped, clearly a little embarrassed by his mistake. 

Kazuichi could see Gundham was about to say something in response and quickly butted in to stop him.

“Nah, it’s alright! Uhm, can you show me where you keep the actuators?” Kazuichi asked, thankful that he could get the conversation off their identities as soon as possible. The salesman was quick to show Kazuichi the products and tell him everything about them despite the information being right on the label. It took everything in the mechanic not to tell the man to shut up and let him look for himself. To his relief, another customer had just walked in and the salesman quickly turned his attention to them instead. Finally he could shop in peace. 

Unfortunately, the place was almost completely bare of anything actually worthwhile. He could make pretty much any of this stuff, better and cheaper, in his own workshop. He did manage to find a few things that would be useful in the long run but otherwise, he chalked the whole thing up to being a waste of time. Heading out of the store, Kazuichi found himself apologizing to Gundham and Sonia for it.

After that, the three of them began wandering around nearly the entire mall. Gundham got himself a fair deal of clothing, changing into his new outfit halfway through the shopping spree. It was just as dramatic as Kazuichi expected, if a little more toned back. Kazuichi didn’t get much for himself, however. He was too nervous to ask much of anything from Sonia and wanted to avoid seeming needy or cheap. Nevermind that she kept insisting she didn’t mind. He knew how humans could be.

Finally, they decided to end the day by heading up to one of the many restaurants located around the mall. They were even more excited for this once Kazuichi told them that Gundham actually could eat food. After finding themselves a table, Kazuichi agreed to go up and order the food for the three of them. Gundham was apparently quite adamant about him getting vegan food, having a distinct distaste for the harming of any life at this point. Sonia seemed to agree with him and thus, the two had convinced Kazuichi to also get something vegan. He really hoped there were some good vegan meats here or else he had a feeling he wasn’t going to enjoy dinner today. Especially since Kazuichi had always been a strict carnivore before now.

When he came back, he was greeted with questions about how and why an android would even need to eat. Apparently not even Gundham really knew the answer, seemingly missing that information in his jumbled mind. Kazuichi tried his best to explain that the androids he modified had similar digestive tracts to humans, however food could be easily replaced by any other energy source. Food was more of a luxury than anything else. This only prompted more questions of what other modifications Kazuichi had done to Gundham. 

“I mean, for the most part you’re just an average android. The digestive system is more just a plus to make you feel more human. If you never ate, you might stand out you know?” Kazuichi explained as he bit into a surprisingly good vegan burger. Thank the stars for it. “Let’s see… I also modified your “blood vessels.” Instead of bleeding blue oil like any other android, it’ll start out a pinkish, like human blood! However, if you bleed too much or lose a big chunk of your body, the colorization mods won’t work as well.” Gundham looked intrigued and stared at the knife at his side. Kazuichi quickly became alarmed. “B-but let’s not test it out right now, okay?” Kazuichi panicked, thankful that Gundham seemed to agree with him. 

“Anything else I should be made aware of?” Gundham asked.

“Well… uh… “ Kazuichi paused to think before feeling his face heat up significantly once he remembered. “I-I think you can figure out anything else on your own!” Kazuichi said, voice getting higher pitched from embarrassment. Gundham simply rose a brow at that, clearly a little annoyed from not getting a direct answer. “S-so uh, how’re you feeling about your new outfit?” Kazuichi quickly asked, hoping to steer the conversation away from his more… flustering modifications. 

To his amusement, Gundham took the bait and started rambling about it. He had gotten a new pair of shoes, pants, a button up layered over another button up, all underneath his trench coat. He knew Gundham could now register temperatures so he wondered if he was really okay with how warm it must’ve felt. Even if the second layer was thin, it still had to be somewhat uncomfortable, right? Gundham certainly didn’t seem to mind.

Time seemed to fly from that point forward. The three talked about random topics that came up and for once, everything actually felt alright. Kazuichi had never really had friends before but if this was what friendship felt like… boy had he been missing out.


	6. Sleep

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kazuichi is exhausted but Gundham won't stop arguing with him. Gundham also gets to discover the horrors of nightmares and Kazuichi gets to revisit one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait! I've been busy with the end of the semester school stuff. I might not post for another week because of family issues but hopefully you won't have to wait too long. Anyways, this is another chapter I wrote in the middle of the night, half asleep. I hope it's coherent enough-
> 
> Also warning! I updated the tags, please read them in case anything triggers you!

Kazuichi hadn’t had such a busy day in a long, long while. The last time he had felt this mentally exhausted was years ago, when he was only about 5 years old. He still hadn’t recovered from that hell but ignoring it did a good job of tricking him into thinking he’d moved on. Today wasn’t nearly as bad as then but that didn’t change the fact that Kazuichi still wanted to face plant into the nearest bed and sleep well into the next day. He was already running through the events in his head.

He’d rescued an android that was on the brink of death only to be faced with one of the most challenging personalities he’d ever met. Then he had four of his commissions stolen by said android who went on to convince one of Kazuichi’s customers to side with his absurd antics after forcing Kazuichi to disguise both him and the commissioned bots. Finally, the day closed off by him being dragged around one of the city’s biggest malls just to find the man some clothes.

Now, the sun had long set and the street and building lights had flickered on to decorate the city. Stepping out of the car, Kazuichi managed to drag himself back to the workshop with Gundham close behind. He could vaguely hear Sonia shouting her goodbyes to the two of them before the car took off, leaving the two of them alone once again.

“Alright, I think that’s enough for one day.” Kazuichi groaned, rubbing his forehead and thankful that he didn’t get migraines. He was certain he’d feel one coming on right about now if he did. “You can sleep in the guest room tonight if you want. We have a lot of work to do if you’re going to leave by tomorrow.” Kazuichi was already wandering around his workplace to make sure everything was in place and taken care of before he went to bed himself. He was so preoccupied, he didn’t even notice Gundham glaring at him. 

“Why must I be prepared to depart on next day?” Gundham asked, crossing his arms defiantly. Kazuichi turned around, frustration clear on his face.

“Tanaka, you can’t stay here forever. You gotta get out of here eventually and the sooner, the better.” Kazuichi answered, now glaring back at Gundham. He almost wished Sonia was still here so he had a chance of her backing him up however he quickly recognized that she would likely side with Gundham once again.

“I had not been made aware of this. Why am I only now hearing that I have a time constraint on my residing here?” Gundham was glaring at Kazuichi as though he had been tricked.

“You’re saying that like you wanna stay here.” 

“Perhaps that is what I am alleging.” 

“Tanaka, no!” Kazuichi snapped, much faster than he usually would. He was blaming it on exhaustion. “You are not staying here, you have to get out on your own eventually. All of the androids I repair do. It’s how it’s done, always has been. You’re not supposed to stay!”

“And pray tell, why might that be?” Gundham was refusing to back down and it was only serving to agitate Kazuichi more and more at this point. 

“I don’t fucking know, it just is! Besides, if you stay here any longer, you’ll almost definitely get me killed since you seriously don’t know how to shut the hell up.” Kazuichi saw Gundham’s eyes widen at the remark, clearly insulted.

“You dare insinuate that I would indirectly be your downfall? If you were to perish, it would be by my own hands. To even conceive of such an insult, I should cast unto you a thousand curses!”

“Seriously? You wonder why I don’t feel safe around you when you’re saying shit like that?” Kazuichi shook his head. “We’re not arguing this, Tanaka. Go to sleep. I’ll set you up with a job and a place to stay tomorrow.”

“We very well must continue to argue this if you truly believe you can rid yourself of me so easily.” Gundham sat himself down to accentuate his point.

“Why?” Kazuichi whined, dragging his hands down his face. “What are you gaining from this? Do you just wanna make my life a living hell? Really, what did I do to deserve this?” At this point Kazuichi was practically pleading with Gundham but he really couldn’t care less. Gundham’s face twisted to confusion.

“I do not wish to make your existence painful, shark toothed one. I only desire to continue residing in this realm. ” Gundham said, much softer now. “And perhaps… I am certain that I will never be able to trust any human quite as much as I trust you.”

Kazuichi glanced back at Gundham. The android looked unsure, nervous and fidgety. He wasn’t expecting that somehow but he had seen that fear before. Okay, maybe Kazuichi could handle this. This was familiar.

“Hey, I get that.” Kazuichi said, walking over to Gundham only to stop when he saw the android flinch. Even if he did trust Kazuichi, he clearly was still wary of him. Another thing Kazuichi was used to. “But you met Sonia! So clearly there are more humans out there that you’ll get along with. There are a lot more good humans out there than you think, it’s just knowing the tricks to find them that’s challenging. Plus, there’s tons of other androids out there in hiding just like you. If they can manage it, the great Gundham Tanaka surely can too, right?” Kazuichi smiled as brightly as he could despite his sleepiness catching up to him fast.

Kazuichi really did everything in his power to get the androids he fixed on their own two feet before he sent them packing. Getting them jobs, homes, setting up passports and identification. There was a whole process but Kazuichi had mastered it so that it wasn’t so difficult anymore. Now the hardest part was social integration. That was always where the androids he helped got hung up.

“As much as I appreciate your kind words, mortal… I still must refuse.” Gundham said, standing back up.

“Gundham.” Kazuichi used his first name in hopes of driving his point home. “You need to leave. There’s nothing here for you. You need to get out and live your own life, set your own goals, learn and grow. Don’t you want that?” Gundham still didn’t look convinced. “Just… let’s just go to bed okay? Sleep on it.”

“I would be astonished if I did change my mind, come tomorrow.” Gundham retorted and thankfully, Kazuichi was too tired to be annoyed anymore. “However, I am now perplexed by something else.” Kazuichi rose a brow. “How am I to sleep?”

“Oh.” Kazuichi blinked, thankful that they were able to move on to something else. “Well, that’s another modification I made. You can just sorta… shut down and wake up whenever. Like actual sleeping. If your senses are overloaded enough while sleeping, you’ll be woken up involuntarily. Sometimes you can even wake yourself thanks to your internal clock.” Kazuichi said, looking proud of himself but in an exhausted sort of way. Gundham was definitely catching on that Kazuichi needed sleep soon but he still had questions. He ignored the feeling he identified as guilt in search for more answers.

“And why would I deliberately put myself in such a vulnerable position?” Gundham scoffed.

“Well uh… I mean, I guess you don’t really need to.” Kazuichi yawned. “But some older androids have it sorta programmed into them that they need sleep like humans. Because they’ve been running too long and are overheating. It’s why the more you exhaust those kinds of androids, the sleepier they’ll get. They translate their overheating as tiredness. Sleeping lets the cooling systems redirect all the energy usually put into other systems to themselves to allow them to work to their fullest. In your case, your cooling systems are so up to date that you don’t have that problem. For you, it’s just a luxury but sometimes it’s just nice to turn off the old motherboard.”

Gundham nodded in understanding though he found it fascinating that some androids actually needed sleep. He was under the assumption that none of them had such mortal needs but he had forgotten how fragile the older models were.

“Now, you gonna go to sleep?” Kazuichi asked, stretching as he already made his way to the stairs that led up to his home. 

“I suppose I shall indulge myself just this once.” Gundham sighed, following after the mechanic. He figured he might as well if this would allow him enough quiet time to gather his thoughts. Gundham was going to need it if he wanted to convince Kazuichi to let him stay.

**********************

Kazuichi was back in his workshop, parts lying everywhere and luminescent screens lighting up the room. He could never remember what he was working on but in his hands was a little android hamster. Kazuichi knew that couldn’t be right because he didn’t start working on synthetic pets for another year. 

It was too painful a reminder of his father who worked on them when he wasn’t working on humanoids. It was a good form of income, simple and not nearly as damning if he was caught making them illegally. But of course, that wouldn’t be what had done him in. It would’ve started with the discovery of his synthetic pets, then the suspicion that he might be hiding something bigger, and then…

The door would’ve been thrown off its hinges if his father were any stronger, being swung open and slammed closed frantically. Kazuichi quickly got to his feet, shaking a little. He knew what was coming and yet he couldn’t make the memory stop.

“You’ve got to get down to the panic room!” Kazuichi’s father shouted. “Hide in there and don’t leave until Usami tells you, okay?” Usami was their security system, she scanned the inside and out of their workshop for threats and informed them of where they were at all times. She was apparently programmed by an android that his father was friends with.

“O-okay but what’s going on?” Kazuichi asked, panic in his voice. He knew but he asked anyway. He never went off script. “What’s happening?”

“They found out.” His father said hurriedly, grabbing some things and shoving them into a bag. “You need to hide, okay? I’ve already had Usami wipe everything about you and my projects from this building. So long as they don’t find you, everything will be alright.” There was a hint of uncertainty in his voice that didn’t ease Kazuichi at all. Suddenly the bag his father had been filling was shoved into Kazuichi’s arms and he was being pushed to the hidden panic room. He didn’t fight it, didn’t ask anymore questions because he thought he could ask more later. Kazuichi wished he had asked more.

The door to the panic room was opened and Kazuichi rushed inside, setting the bag on the floor once he was in. He then turned around to see his father glancing back at the front door, still fully outside. 

“Dad, what are you doing? Come on, you need to hurry!” Kazuichi shouted, his anxiety rising. His father turned to look at him, a terrified, terrifying expression on his face. 

“Kazuichi, you’re amazing, you know that?” His father started, catching Kazuichi off guard. “I always knew you were going to do amazing things and I really hoped I could see you do it all. I was so eager to see you grow and learn, to become your own person and-” There was a sudden banging at the door. Kazuichi couldn’t process what was going on anymore. He didn’t want to process it. “I’m sorry, Kazuichi. I’m so sorry I won’t be there to see it. I can’t be there without putting you in danger. They won’t stop until they find me, do you understand?” He didn’t understand for the longest time, he didn’t want to. The banging was getting stronger and Kazuichi could hear the hinges starting to give out. They had a sturdy door but it wouldn’t hold much longer.

“D-dad… come on! You’re wasting time, just get in!” Kazuichi screamed.

“I’m sorry. I love you, son.” His father smiled, tears running down his face and the door to the room slammed shut. Barely a second later did Kazuichi hear the front door fly off its hinges and crash into their equipment. People were shouting at each other and at his father. Before he could understand a word being said, there was a single gunshot and the sound of a body hitting the floor. It was all so jarring, confusing, overwhelming that Kazuichi didn’t process anything that was happening until it was all over. 

The panic room must’ve had one way sound proofing because Kazuichi distinctly remembered himself screaming.

**********************

That wasn’t his screaming.

The dream usually went on until Kazuichi exited the panic room to see the aftermath. He really wasn’t complaining that it had suddenly been interrupted though, aside from it being a bit jarring. It was a welcome change. 

What wasn’t a welcome change was being scared out of his bed by another person’s screams. Kazuichi quickly recognized them to be Gundham’s and rushed out of his room. He didn’t need to turn on the lights to see clearly in the dark hallway as he made his way to where the other man was sleeping. When he entered, he was greeted by a panicked android, huddled in the corner of the room and clutching a blanket close to his chest. 

“H-hey, Gundham. It’s okay. It’s alright.” Kazuichi said as softly as he could, alerting Gundham from far away of his presence. The android’s eyes shot up to meet with Kazuichi’s and it took him a moment to recognize who they belonged to.

“S...Souda?” Gundham asked, his voice wavering in fear.

“Yeah. Yeah, it’s me.” Kazuichi stepped a little closer but that just seemed to make Gundham recoil further. He really had to stop approaching Gundham when he was like this, it never helped. He just wasn’t used to keeping his distance, finding his own comfort in the closeness of others. Kazuichi often forgot that some people coped differently. He wished he knew how Gundham coped though he had a feeling not even the android himself knew that.

“I… I thought I… but… where...?” Gundham was clearly disoriented and confused and it didn’t take much for Kazuichi to figure out what was going on. His first dream was jarring too, though he had the luxury of it being a pleasant one. 

“You were having a dream. It’s just a bunch of ideas and images that can come up involuntarily while sleeping. They aren’t real.” Kazuichi did his best to reassure, hoping he could help Gundham understand. He did seem to be relaxing more. “Do you want to tell me what happened in the dream?” Gundham quickly shook his head. “Alright, you don’t have to. Is there anything I can do to help you calm down, though?” He didn’t respond. That was okay. “How about I just stay over here. I’ll leave if you want me to but I won’t if you don’t.” Gundham paused for a moment before nodding.

“Stay.” He muttered, almost too quiet for Kazuichi to hear. It was unusual to hear the android so soft spoken. Everything up until now Gundham had said with passion, ensuring the world could hear it. But Kazuichi didn’t mind. As promised, he wasn’t going anywhere.

As promised, Kazuichi wouldn’t leave Gundham alone tonight.


End file.
